


The Premiere

by Silvestria



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fans & Fandom, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Crack - sort of, F/M, Happy Ending, Social Media, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Spoilers, Twitter, fandom references, this is a way for me to work through my issues with TROS
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-04
Updated: 2020-01-15
Packaged: 2021-02-22 15:06:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,620
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22117843
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silvestria/pseuds/Silvestria
Summary: Rey (@sunshinerey) just wants Kira to be happy with her found family. Ben (@knightsolo) desperately wants Kylo to live and be together with Kira.Sitting next to each other at the premiere of the final episode of Galaxy Wars was a mistake. The film itself was a disaster. But what happens next? That could be fate.Inspired by a twitter prompt.
Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey, Rey & Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 64
Kudos: 294
Collections: Reylo Prompt Fills (@reylo_prompts)





	1. Before

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by the following prompt posted on [@reylo_prompts](https://twitter.com/reylo_prompts).
> 
> Curious Cat Prompt: "Ben, an anti-Kiraylo, and Rey, a Reylo, go out and get drunk after the premiere of a Galaxy Wars film everyone hates. They commiserate and find middle ground."
> 
> I've changed it around a bit because I was more interested in Ben as the shipper and Rey as the anti, but I hope whoever originally requested this prompt enjoys it all the same!
> 
> This is dedicated to the wonderful UK Reylos who were amazing companions at the London premiere and have been such a great support network afterwards. Sadly, none of them are Ben Solo, but a girl can dream!

**Rey - > TROS premiere @sunshinerey  
**Lightsaber earrings, check! Gorgeous Kira and the double sun pin made by @roticoart, check! Ticket to THE PREMIERE AT LEICESTER SQUARE, check check check!

_retweeted by @galaxywarsbrain_

**finn @finniganswoke  
**@sunshinerey Enjoy Peanut! Still DEVASTATED you’re going without @roticoart and me. :<

 **Rey - > TROS premiere @sunshinerey  
**@finniganswoke @roticoart I am ALSO going to see it with you. TOMORROW. But you know how I am… I need to get my emotions out on my own.

 **Galaxy Wars Brain @galaxywarsbrain  
**@sunshinerey Can’t believe you’re getting to see it before all of us in the US! You’re the only person I know going to the London premiere. Wanna come on the podcast to discuss reactions next week?

_retweeted by @sunshinerey_

**Rose Tico Art @roticoart  
**@sunshinerey @finniganswoke If you spoil this movie ISTG I will destroy you Rey.

 **Rey - > TROS premiere @sunshinerey  
**@galaxywarsbrain You know I always want to go on your podcast. <3

 **Galaxy Wars Brain @galaxywarsbrain  
**@sunshinerey We don’t mind if you just give us a hint of what to expect either…

 **Rose Tico Art @roticoart  
**@galaxywarsbrain @sunshinerey YES WE FUKCING DO

 **Solo @knightsolo  
**What a surprise. @galaxywarsbrain proving its bias yet again. Any time you want a perspective from someone who understands mythic storytelling, let me know.

 **Galaxy Wars Brain @galaxywarsbrain  
**@knightsolo ?????? We are an unbiased GW podcast and happy to have you on board if you check the attitude. We have lots of Kiraylo shippers on the podcast but that’s not for everyone.

 **Solo @knightsolo  
**@galaxywarsbrain Kiraylo is LITERALLY THE STORY BEING TOLD. It is the CENTRAL ROMANCE of the ST. How hard is it for you to grasp? And my 3659 followers agree with me. Not to mention the 12543 kudos on just one of my fics.

 **Rey - > TROS premiere @sunshinerey  
**@knightsolo @galaxywarsbrain What is up with you?Wow you have millions of readers good for you. that doesn’t make romanticising abuse ok. And before you ask, I do understand stories. I am doing an ENGLISH DEGREE. And the idea of seeing Kira with Kylo is sickening. Just leave us alone. Go do your own podcast.

 **Rey - > TROS premiere @sunshinerey  
**@finniganswoke @roticoart Cannot believe I’m literally on my way to the premiere and being made to think about Kiraylo. Blergh. I just want Kira to be happy with her found family. Why is that so hard for people to understand? Romance isn’t everything!

 **finn @finniganswoke  
**@sunshinerey @roticoart Breathe. Just breathe. :P She’s just a person on the internet with really twisted shipping views. Her opinion doesn’t matter. You DO understand the story.

 **Rey - > TROS premiere @sunshinerey  
**@finniganswoke @roticoart I know. I’m just nervous enough as it is. Like what if Kiraylo is canon? It’s bad enough accidentally seeing the fanart. At least I’m going with a general audience. Can you bELIevE they’ve booked out cinemas to see it together?

 **DM from @galaxywarsbrain to @sunshinerey  
**Hey Rey, sorry for landing you in this. Did not expect Solo to kick off like that. You know I’ve gotta be neutral about shipping on the podcast. Seriously though, please just let me know if I’m going to like it afterwards! Meant it about the podcast btw.

 **DM from @sunshinerey to @galaxywarsbrain  
**No worries Poe. It’s just so annoying the shippers thinking they’re right and pretending they’re not being gross when they are and then having so many followers!! They’re always having so much fun when the ship is awful. Apart from Solo who needs to take a chill pill for real.

 **DM from @galaxywarsbrain to @sunshinerey  
**She seriously does! Good writer though. I read a few chapters of her first fic and if you ignored the ship it was incredible. I should get her on the podcast sometime but not if you’ll feel awkward.

 **DM from @sunshinerey to @galaxywarsbrain  
**Eh whatever. You gotta do what you gotta do. I’ll message you afterwards!

 **Solo @knightsolo  
**@sunshinerey What is MY problem? You say you are doing an English degree but you are unable to realise that GW is a myth. Kylo is not a Nazi and killing your father is a METAPHOR. He and Kira are like yin and yang – they are the same. They complement each other. Go read Campbell.

 **Rey - > TROS premiere @sunshinerey  
**@knightsolo Uh thanks but if I wanted extra reading I would contact my ACTUAL PROFESSORS. Did I ever say Kylo is a Nazi? You did. And sorry for thinking that Kira deserves better than a whiny emo 30 year old who KILLED HIS FATHER. Which is a thing he did, not metaphorically.

 **DM from @sunshinerey to @roticoart  
**I’m going to go look at all your gorgeous found family art. I WILL NOT CRY ON THE TUBE. But how can Solo say these things? How can ANYONE stan a character who KILLED HIS FATHER? It’s gross if the film validates this.

 **DM from @roticoart to @sunshinerey  
***hugs* I’ll send you this new piece I’m working on of what my ideal ending will be. Let’s just say – the Kiraylos won’t like it! It’s just a sketch atm but I’m determined to finish it before seeing TROS. Forget that jerk.

 **DM from @sunshinerey to @roticoart  
**<3 <3 <3 IT IS GORGEOUS. My crops are watered, my pores cleansed. LOVE. <3 <3 <3 Please do a print of it!

 **Phasma HAS READ LEAKS @phasmagoria  
**GW tweets tonight are going to look hilarious when you’ve actually seen the movie. LOL *face palm* @sunshinerey @knightsolo @finniganswoke @roticoart @hugsandmillie @galaxywarsbrain

 **Solo @knightsolo  
**@sunshinerey Good luck with that English degree, Karen.

_@sunshinerey has blocked @knightsolo_

* * *

Rey emerged out of the tube station and immediately put up her umbrella. London at 11.30pm the week before Christmas was still buzzing near Leicester Square and the rain slanting down made the bright streets shiny. Rey had lived in London for two years but rarely came out at night like this – Finn and Rose were more the stay-in-and-play-boardgames than the go-out-and-party types and it was nearly an hour on the Northern Line to get into the centre anyway.

So it felt like a treat to be out now and going to the premiere of her favourite film series. It felt glamorous even if she had dressed for spending three hours in the cinema in the middle of the night without seeing anyone she knew rather than having a night on the town. And now she needed to concentrate on the film itself and being as comfortable as she could be considering how nervous she was and trying not to get too riled up by what was happening on Twitter. It wouldn’t bother her so much if it wasn’t constant. A constant war between people who ultimately liked the same thing. It was exhausting and stupid. Deep down she knew it was stupid. But the shippers were so smug and she had a horrible, tiny feeling that they might be about to be proved right in this film. It wasn’t something she had discussed with Finn and Rose who, after all, didn’t hate Kylo quite as much as she did. Rose had even done some Kiraylo art as a commission once. And Finn was more bothered by the queerbaiting than what was going on with either Kira and Kylo. But at least none of them actively shipped it and they understood why she hated it so much. Kylo was just _the worst_. What kind of message was it sending if you supported a fictional character like that? And yes, she did know the difference between fiction and reality, thank you very much, but fiction affected reality and reality affected fiction and how could those shippers be so _blind_?

She was getting worked up. She needed to calm down. Remind herself that it was fiction. Remind herself that Kylo wasn’t even the main character, that his actor had done barely any promotion for the film, that…

But it would be much easier to believe this if the cinema itself didn’t have gigantic posters of Kira and Kylo fighting in the rain everywhere she looked. _Enemies_ , she reminded herself, they were _enemies_. Shifting her umbrella so that she could use her phone without getting wet as she stood in the queue outside the cinema, she opened up the latest chapter of a favourite Stormpilot fic she had been saving for just such a moment when she needed distraction and comfort. The queue shuffled slowly forwards.

Inside, Rey had to put her phone away and take stock of her surroundings. The cinema was packed out. There were lots of people in costume, mainly men it had to be admitted, lots of big groups, and a queue for snacks so long she couldn’t even work out where it ended. No point even trying for _that_. For the first time, she began to doubt her decision to come on her own. Wouldn’t it have been better to have Finn and Rose with her to calm her down? Well, she would tomorrow when she saw it with them in their local cinema. This was for her and her emotions. A private viewing surrounded by hundreds of other people. Whatever happened, she’d deal with it on her own, come to terms with it on her own, and by the time she was back with her friends she’d have her reaction under control. Whatever her reaction was.

She touched her lightsaber earrings as a kind of good luck talisman. _Please let Kira be happy, just let her be happy_ , she thought desperately and entered her screen, feeling almost as if she was on the way to the gallows.

She had a seat about half way up right in the middle. It was an enormous screen, the biggest cinema she had ever been in and some of the excitement returned just because the atmosphere was so infectious. She clambered over a line of six middle-aged men all dressed as different droids, past a couple who looked relatively normal and finally sank down into her seat with a sigh of relief and pulled out her phone again.

On her left was the normal couple; on her right was folded a young man who made the enormous Leicester Square seats look small, his legs pressing against the back of the seat in front. He was dressed all in black with a shock of black hair almost covering his face and he was staring at his phone, apparently also alone. He paid no attention to her.

Rey took off her coat and made herself comfortable but kept sneaking glances at the man next to her. It was quite weird to see someone else on their own. He also had an absolutely huge vat of popcorn all to himself.

After several minutes of fidgeting and wondering if she should ignore him or if she should say something and potentially have a buddy for the premiere which she was slightly regretting attending alone, she gave in and turned in her seat to face him.

“Hi!”

For a few seconds he continued to ignore her, scrolling through what looked like Twitter but she didn’t want to be too nosy about checking. Then his head jerked up and he blinked at her out of owlishly dark eyes.

“Were you talking to me? Hi?”

As he turned towards her she noticed that his black hoodie had a picture of Kylo’s masked head on it. Rey’s smile faltered.

“Hi. Sorry. I just – just thought I’d say hi.”

“Why?”

He had an American accent, a soft one at odds with the abrasiveness of his words. And a deep voice.

“Because I’m here alone and you’re here alone so I just thought…”

“Why do you assume I’m here alone?” Her eyes skated past him to the empty seats beyond. “I could be waiting for friends.”

“Oh. I guess so. Sorry. I won’t-“

“I’m not though.”

“Oh.”

If Rey could have made herself invisible at this moment, she would have done so happily.

But the young man spoke to her again, looking slightly amused at her discomfort. “Do you want some popcorn?”

She blinked. “Uh, okay… Thanks.”

He moved the tub between their seats. “Help yourself. I heard British portion sizes were smaller than US ones so I got the large but turns out it’s still very big.”

She scooped up a handful of popcorn and ate it.

“Sweet _and_ salty!?” she exclaimed a moment later, her mouth full.

He raised his eyebrows. “Is that a problem?”

“Nah, it’s all popcorn. I just only ever get sweet. It’s nice actually.”

The young man seemed to be considering something a moment, his jaw working. Then he said, “It’s like a metaphor. For balance.”

Rey stopped, her hand suspended in the process of getting another handful. “The popcorn is a metaphor,” she said flatly.

He shrugged awkwardly, but the tips of his ears, just visible under his dark hair were turning red. “I overthink things. I read a lot into these films, too much probably. Sorry, it doesn’t matter if you don’t get it. A metaphor is-”

“I get it, okay! I know what a _metaphor_ is. I just think it’s a bit…”

“Stupid.”

“No,” said Rey forcefully. “Unexpected, maybe. I mean, I read a lot into the films too – though probably not the same things you do.”

He glanced at her warily. “What do you mean?”

“Well, you have a t-shirt with Kylo on it. So I’m guessing you like Kylo. I, er, I don’t.”

“Who do you like?”

“Kira. She’s the best part of the film for sure. I love her.”

“Because she’s a girl?”

“Well, yes, in a way, but not just because of that. She’s strong and powerful and she’s an everywoman. She could be anyone.” _She could be me_ , thought Rey, but she didn’t say it. “I love how she’s not letting her origins stop her, how she’s powerful in the Force without being related to any of the great families. I just- she means a lot to me and I want her to be happy,” she finished quickly, suddenly realising how much she had been talking and that he was looking at her in a way that made her feel as if he was hearing so much more than what she was saying.

“You want Kira to be happy but you don’t like Kylo?”

“No. I mean, don’t take this the wrong way or anything but he’s awful and, like, he’s a good villain – I _guess_ – but it just icks me out when people make out that he’s a hero when he’s done all these terrible things. Sorry, I mean, I know you like him… I don’t… I hope he has a big epic battle scene with Kira and then I hope he gets a great death scene. It’s not that I don’t appreciate his character, just not as some kind of misunderstood hero.”

The young man had looked away while she was speaking. Rey wondered if she had gone too far but, honestly, she was _trying_ , she was trying to be fair and to acknowledge Kylo as an important character and not be too biased – a good death scene would be fitting, surely? This wasn’t the internet where people could just say anything, this was conversation with a real person and she wasn’t some kind of monster, dehumanised with an ant emoji.

She was just about to say something else and try to dig herself out of her hole when he said very quietly, turning a little away from her, “I hope that he lives.”

Rey felt awkward, sensing something else there but knowing she had no right to pry. She cleared her throat. “So, how come you’re at the premiere on your own then?”

He looked at her with something like gratitude and took some more popcorn. “My work sent me to London for a few weeks and as soon as I found out I thought I’d see if I could get to the premiere, but I don’t know anyone here.”

“Oh, that’s really nice!” she replied enthusiastically. “And now you have me to watch with!”

His lips quirked up at the corner. “So I do.” There was just a touch of sarcasm in the tone. “I wouldn’t have gone with anyone anyway back home,” he added. “The people I know, they just like it for the pew-pew-pew.”

He made funny little gestures to accompany his words and Rey could not help laughing. “They don’t get your interest in _balance_?”

“No need to sneer! I’m interested in every aspect of the story but you can’t disassociate the story as a whole from the relationship being built up between Kylo and Kira.”

“I seem to manage!” replied Rey lightly but inwardly she was banging her head against the seat in front. It was just her luck to have found a perfectly pleasant, amusing, even attractive person to sit next to at the premiere – and he was an overly serious Kiraylo shipper with a Kylo hoodie on. It was too bad.

“Why are you here alone?” he asked in reply, shifting slightly towards her as a large party of teenagers with glow-in-the-dark lightsabers sat down on his other side. “You don’t have the excuse, I’m guessing, of being half way round the world on a work trip.”

“Nah, I’m a student here. I guess… this film is really important to me and I want to know how I’ll react before I see it with people.”

“You are with people,” he pointed out, very literally. “Lots of people.”

“They’re not _my_ people,” she replied. “I’m on my own here. It’s how I like it.”

His eyes flickered over her face and for some reason she blushed, the feeling of being exposed passing over her once again. Then he settled back into his seat and dug into the popcorn once more, his hand briefly skating over hers as she also reached for popcorn. “Me too.”

The lights began to dim. Someone wolf-whistled. A notice appeared telling everyone to switch off their phones. Both Rey and her companion reached quickly for their phones and each sent one final tweet into the twittersphere before turning their phones off.

Just as screen filled with the title page of the film, Rey leaned over and whispered, her breath close to his ear. “Hey, good luck! I hope you get what you want for Kylo.”

He turned his head, his face suddenly very close to hers, his eyes bright in the darkness of the cinema, his breath touching her cheek. “Thanks! I hope you get what you want for Kira too.”

She turned away, her heart pounding as the music started and the Galaxy Wars logo swam into view, and she found unexpected tears start into her eyes. This was it. This was the end. This was what it was all building towards. She hoped… she hoped it was worth it.

* * *

**Rey - > TROS premiere @sunshinerey  
**I’m here! I’m IN THE CINEMA. It’s going to start! And… I think I’m next to a Kiraylo shipper. (A male, HOT Kiraylo shipper?!????) What are the odds??!??! SEE YOU ON THE OTHER SIDE FAM.

 **Solo @knightsolo  
**On the one hand, I’m watching the London premiere of TROS. On the other hand, I’m sitting next to a very outspoken anti. This is the true meaning of balance.


	2. After

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the overwhelming response to this fic. I hope you enjoy Part 2. :)

_“Kira… Skywalker.”_

The final, haunting image of the film faded onto the screen and the credits began to roll. One person clapped.

In the middle of the cinema, Rey sat silent and numb. Was this the end? Was this _it_? Had she had to watch Kira end up alone on a desert planet without her friends with only ghosts for company with her own eyes? Had she had to hear the words ‘Kira Palpatine’ with her own ears? Was this the hopeful ending she had been promised? She was sure she ought to feel something… but she felt _nothing_. She hadn’t even cried once.

And as for Kira Skywalker… it didn’t make sense. She couldn’t explain why it didn’t but she knew instinctively that it didn’t. Fine, after the first film, she had been a KiraSky. Her tumblr username had even been KiraintheSky for a while. It had just seemed right that the heroine of the new trilogy should be a Skywalker, Luke’s daughter. But she had gradually fallen out of love with the theory and after _The Last Jedi_ it had seemed dead in the water and she had embraced Kira Nobody whole-heartedly. The idea that Luke should abandon his own daughter, that Han and Leia should fail to recognise their own niece… it was stupid. As stupid as the people who thought Kira and Kylo were twins despite having a ten year age gap. But now she was being asked to imagine… Her brain hurt even skirting around what this new film was asking her to imagine.

The normal couple on her left began to gather up their things and it jolted her out of her frozen stupor to consider her unlikely companion on her right who hadn’t said anything either. But whereas the film had left Rey numb, the Kylo fan looked… devastated. There was no other way to put the look of bleak horror and misery on his face. And was that – was that a _tear_ drying on his cheek? She could not be sure in the dim light of the credits.

But if there was one thing Rey knew how to do, it was to help people.

She reached out and gently touched his arm. “Hey. Hey- um, I don’t know your name-”

“Ben,” he replied very softly without turning his head. “It’s Ben.”

“Hey, Ben, you okay?”

He did not immediately reply. Rey waited a beat longer and opened her mouth to speak again, when he said in a tone of empty astonishment, “They killed Kylo. They really killed him. They shouldn’t have done that.”

“Yeah, they did that. Come on, let’s get out of here, right? Unless you want to stay for…” No, if he wanted to listen to the soundtrack he could do it at home later. She was slightly worried he was going into shock. She wasn’t entirely sure she wasn’t as well. “Let’s go, Ben.”

She stood up and tugged on his arm until he stood up as well and… holy _crap_ was he tall! Rey was not a small women but Ben dwarfed her in every way. He was so tall and so broad and his hands mechanically gathering up his coat and scarf were massive too. Rey blinked several times. She had just seen _The Rise of Skywalker_ and all she could think about were a stranger’s hands! But Kira… Her stomach turned. Perhaps objectifying poor old Ben was a better bet. She slipped on her own coat and started walking down the emptying aisle, checking to see that Ben was following her. His head was slightly down, his dark hair falling over his eyes, one hand shoved into his coat pockets. His entire demeanor suggested that he was trying to make himself as small as possible. Rey felt a wave of anger at the film course through her at what it was doing to him. Or perhaps he was like this all the time. What did she know after all?

Once they were out of the screen, Rey became aware of a more pressing need. She turned to Ben. “Hey, um, I need to…” She gestured in the direction of the toilets. “Wait for me here, okay?”

He dumped his nearly empty popcorn bucket into a rubbish bin, a quietly considerate thing to do, and nodded. Rey scarpered off and tried to do her business as quickly as possible, difficult when so many others had the same idea. The temptation to get out her phone as she waited in the queue was strong but she resisted. She didn’t want to look at twitter, didn’t want to have to face Poe’s questions of what it was like, didn’t want to read what everyone was saying, didn’t want to get into the inevitable drama… not yet. Not until she had managed to work out what she was feeling.

By the time she was washing her hands and glaring at her reflection in the mirror, she had worked that underneath the numbness, there was also rage. So when she left the bathroom, it was at a purposeful stomp and she went straight up to Ben, who was still standing in exactly the same place she had left him, staring into space.

“When I came out of the midnight showing of _The Last Jedi_ people were applauding,” she stated directly, standing right in front of him and tilting her head up. “That’s how people respond when they’ve seen a great film that leaves them hopeful and inspired.”

Ben snorted slightly but he did snap out of his funk enough to meet her eyes. “Hopeful and inspired, yeah right.”

“I don’t think anyone felt like that tonight. I mean, I didn’t.”

A middle-aged man dressed as a creepy Baby Yoda bumped into Rey in passing, knocking her into Ben who grabbed her shoulders. “Oi, asshole, watch it!” he shouted.

He got a laugh and a middle finger for his trouble but Rey was cheered by his anger. It was better than misery.

“C’mon, let’s get out of here.” She grabbed his sleeve and began tugging him out of the maze of different screens.

“Where are you going now?” Ben asked her, sounding almost normal as they finally emerged into Leicester Square.

“Get an Uber, I guess. You?”

He shrugged. “My hotel’s not far away. I’ll just walk.”

“It’s 3.30am!” Rey, who would never walk alone through London in the small hours, baulked at the idea but Ben, big and strong and male Ben, just shrugged. Feeling unreasonably annoyed at the double standards of life, she pulled out her phone which was blowing up with an unusual number of notifications and opened the Uber app straight away.

“Ugh, fifteen minutes,” she sighed. “Would you- would you mind waiting with me? It’s just-”

“Sure, of course,” he put in quickly and they began walking to the nearest street corner together.

“So,” said Ben eventually as Rey finished calling her ride. “Palpatine fucks.”

It was so unexpected, both the statement and the expletive, that Rey let loose a burst of something between a laugh and a snort.

He took a deep breath and glanced down at her. “Palpatine fucks. That old raisin procreated. And, if I can get the timelines in order, must have been about eighty at the time.”

“What? That’s- Wait, _that’s_ what you got from all this?”

“Didn’t you? Kira’s your favourite character after all.” He definitely sounded bitter.

Honestly, this hadn’t even occurred to Rey and the horror of it washed over her all at once. She gave a full body shiver. “That’s gross. Oh my god, that’s so gross. I didn’t even… _Ew_. I didn’t need…”

“Kylo dies a virgin and Palpatine fucks,” repeated Ben, starting to sound depressed again.

Rey twisted her mouth. “I’m sorry,” she managed to say. “About Kylo. It was…” She honestly wasn’t sure.

“It was terrible!” he replied, goaded into energy. “It was so bad. Extremely bad. How could he just disappear and then cut to Kira reuniting with her friends with no closure? It’s ridiculous! He was her soulmate!”

“Right.” She wasn’t even going to argue with him on that. “Look, Ben… shall I – shall I cancel my Uber?”

“What?”

She rolled her shoulders, awkwardness creeping back in but she ploughed on before she could stop herself. “Do you want to go somewhere and talk it over? I think we both need to. Get a drink? A lot of drinks?”

“Is anywhere open? I don’t know London.”

“Somewhere must be.”

But when they looked around Leicester Square and the streets they could see leading off it, nowhere seemed open at all.

“You know,” suggested Ben very tentatively, “I think my hotel bar’s open twenty four seven. It’s quite fancy and only ten minutes away. I promise I’m not trying to lure you there or anything but we could go there, if you like?”

It occurred to Rey very briefly that she wouldn’t altogether mind being lured back to Ben’s hotel “or anything” but she shoved those thoughts to one side and cancelled her Uber.

“Sure; lead on, Macduff!”

He gave her a sideways glance and half-smiled. “You know the actual quotation is _lay on, Macduff_?”

“You’re serious.”

“Yes, it’s frequently misquoted in-”

“No, you’re _seriously_ correcting my facetious, passing reference?”

A pause. “Sorry.”

“Whatever. So. Palpatine.”

“Palpatine.”

“It was a crap plot, right?”

“Right! They spent half the movie chasing MacGuffins.”

“And the other half retconning _The Last Jedi_!”

“You noticed that too?” Ben was now starting to sound excited. “It was so insulting! The entire point of Kylo and Kira having a force bond was to stop them fighting and then they wasted all this time fighting!”

“Mmm.”

He was silent a second, then he said tentatively, “I have to ask. Do you like Kylo any more now? Or do you still hate him?”

That was a complicated question. Rey sighed. “I’m going to need more time to think about it, to be honest. I guess I don’t hate him. You want to know the truth?” She glanced at him quickly and he nodded. She looked away again, concentrating on the dark and damp street, hoping he knew where he was going. “I’m not really surprised they got together. Hey – don’t make that face – they kissed, it totally counts. And I’m not really surprised he was redeemed. I get how the story works. I think they did it okay, actually. I was quite convinced. Before this film, I would have said I thought it was a bad move. Now… I’m not sure what to think. I’m guessing you loved the Kiraylo scenes.”

“No.”

“ _No_? But I would have thought, Kylo dying aside, you’d be really happy with the film?”

“ _Kylo dying aside_? That’s a major caveat. I need to think about it too, but I didn’t want it to happen like this. Here we are.”

He stopped by the entrance to a very sleak, modern hotel block. He swiped them both in with a card and then led her off to one side to the bar, totally empty save for the sole barman, who was reading a newspaper behind the bar.

“Go and sit down and I’ll get you a drink. What do you want?”

Rey made her way to a table with a couple of armchairs by the window. “Anything alcoholic!”

He smiled faintly. “Got it.” And made his way over to the bar.

Rey took off her coat and sank down into an armchair. She closed her eyes briefly and then finally pulled out her phone. It wasn’t that she felt she ought to check in with anyone – Finn and Rose would both be asleep hopefully and she had no-one else – but she felt she ought to make some note to say that she was still alive. Just in case Ben actually was a creep deep undercover as a Galaxy Wars nerd. Who even knew what Kiraylo was. Hmm.

Time to find out what all these notifications were about.

She had… a lot of mentions. And a lot of new followers. She tried to think whether she’d said anything particularly controversial but nothing more than the usual fandom wank came to mind. She had a direct message from Poe and she decided she’d read that first.

 **DM from @galaxybrainwars to @sunshinerey  
** Just in case you haven’t seen… Sorry, sunshine. Didn’t realise this was going to blow up the way it has. But also… AM I RIGHT???

There was a link to a tweet in the DM. Frowning, Rey clicked it.

 **Galaxy Wars Brain @galaxywarsbrain  
** Never tell me the odds! But seriously… are they??

Underneath was a screencap of two tweets that must have appeared next to each other on his timeline:

 **Rey - > TROS premiere @sunshinerey  
**I’m here! I’m IN THE CINEMA. It’s going to start! And… I think I’m next to a Kiraylo shipper. (A male, HOT Kiraylo shipper?!????) What are the odds??!??! SEE YOU ON THE OTHER SIDE FAM.

 **Solo @knightsolo  
** On the one hand, I’m watching the London premiere of TROS. On the other hand, I’m sitting next to a very outspoken anti. This is the true meaning of balance.

Rey blinked, her mouth going suddenly dry. She glanced up, looking at the broad back of Ben at the bar. She looked back down at her phone. Poe’s tweet had thousands of likes and hundreds of retweets. She clicked on the mentions, already regretting it.

 *** Mel * @kiraylosss  
** @galaxywarsbrain Poor @knightsolo omg imagine actually meeting an ant IRL whoever it is

 **Phoebs the Win @jediphoebe  
** @galaxywarsbrain lol as if s*l* is a dude

 **Janka TROS tomorrow @lesbianskira  
** @galaxywarsbrain @jediphoebe shit though @sunshinerey needs to get out. A guy who ships k*r*y*o is NOT a good guy. That shit is abusive. He’s not right in the head.

 **Phoebs the Win @jediphoebe  
** @galaxywarsbrain @lesbianskira @sunshinerey none of them are tbh. fuckin incest.

 **Steph #RedeemKyloRen @darrksideuser  
** @galaxywarsbrain 50k enemies to lovers hurt/comfort rated E #youreallthinkingit

 **Kaydel NO SPOILERS @connixk  
** @galaxywarsbrain @darrksideuser OMG YES Rey + Solo = Reylo #youknowyouloveit

 **Steph #RedeemKyloRen @darrksideuser  
** @galaxywarsbrain @connixk Reylo? Reylo! @mitaka have you seen this?

 **Mitty @mitaka  
** @galaxywarsbrain @darrksideuser @connixk But I thought Solo was female? Have you READ their stuff?

 **Kaydel NO SPOILERS @connixk  
** @galaxywarsbrain @mitaka @connixk @darrksideuser You make a compelling point. ;) But do we actually have any evidence?

 **Millie watches Galaxy Wars @hugsandmillie  
** @galaxywarsbrain Can confirm: @knightsolo is a little girl.

 **Phasma HAS READ LEAKS @phasmagoria  
** @galaxywarsbrain @hugsandmillie @knightsolo LMAO

Rey continued scrolling, unable to look away from the car-crash unfolding in front of her very eyes. This could _not_ be happening.

A shadow fell across the table and she looked up, mouth dry. There was Ben, a lop-sided smile on his weirdly handsome face, Kylo’s mask glowering down at her from his hoodie. He was holding a bottle of bubbly and two champagne glasses.

“Will this do?”

The smile slipped when she failed to reply. “I can get something else if you prefer…”

She shook her head. “No, it’s fine. It’s great. Ben…”

He sat down opposite her and started to remove the wrapping from the cork. “Yeah?”

“Are you… are you online?”

He raised one eyebrow. “I live in the twenty-first century, yes.”

“No, I mean… are you on Twitter?”

His grip on the neck of the bottle tightened momentarily. “Yeah, I have a Twitter account. Why?”

Rey debated within herself a moment before holding her phone up to him showing Poe’s original tweet. She kept her eyes on his face, watching his reaction. She saw him swallow, his Adam’s apple bob.

“You’re Rey? Sunshine Rey?”

She bit her lip. “Yes.”

Something unidentifiable crossed his face. “You think I’m hot?”

“ _What_?”

“It says here that you’re sitting next to a male, hot – in capital letters, Kiraylo shipper. So… you think I’m hot?”

Yes. She had said that. She had indeed written that. Publicly. On the internet. Rey’s blush started somewhere deep in her core and spread out to every part of her body.

“You shouldn’t believe everything you read on the internet!” she blustered, dropping her phone into a crevice in her armchair.

“So you _don’t_ think I’m hot? Disappointing.”

Damn him, he was enjoying this.

“I-”

At that moment, Ben’s grip on the cork caused the inevitable to happen and it popped with a sudden, loud noise that made them both jump. Champagne fizzed and spilled out of the bottle with a little puff of gas and splashed Ben’s hands. He quickly angled the spillage over the two glasses, filling them up with bright bubbles before licking the droplets off his long fingers.

“Do you want one?” he offered. “Sorry for teasing. It’s just I don’t often get compliments like that.”

She took the offered glass automatically, unable to help glancing up and down him as she did. No, she couldn’t take it back. He was weird looking and masked Kylo was never going to do it for her but yet somehow it all worked. Ben was hot, tragically hot.

“That was before I knew who you were,” she mumbled, not meeting his eyes.

“And now you’ve discovered I’m the Kiraylo fandom’s most popular author you take it back?”

She gave a one-shouldered shrug. “Are you really Knight Solo though? It just seems… unlikely somehow.”

“I am. Solo is my surname but it seemed like a good user handle. Suitably mysterious.” He gave her another lopsided smile. “Why is it unlikely? Because men can’t write fanfiction?”

Yes, exactly that, especially the kind of fanfiction she understood Solo – _Ben_ – wrote. But even thinking that made her realise how unintentionally prejudiced a statement that was.

“I just assumed. I guess I shouldn’t have done.”

“It’s okay. I assumed Sunshine Rey was a complete idiot who couldn’t function outside of her computer.” Ouch. “But you’re not like that at all.”

Something about the way he was looking at her took the sting out of his words and made her bite back her retort. Instead she said softly, “I suppose we both wear masks online.”

“I guess we do,” he huffed. Then he raised his glass. “To removing our masks!”

“To not being the assholes we are online in real life!”

They clinked glasses and drank. Rey had only drunk champagne once before, when she had gone to a department party in her first year to celebrate opening a new lecture theatre. It wasn’t really a student drink. But this was very good.

“So, the movie,” began Ben. “We both hated it, I think.”

“I didn’t hate all of it,” admitted Rey. “There were bits I liked. I liked the trio scenes, they were kind of funny. I liked Threepio getting a bigger role. Classic Galaxy Wars.”

“But was it really? Because the so-called trio didn’t have any chemistry and their entire plot was pointless. And Zorrii? What was the point of her except to ram home just how fucking heterosexual-”

“Okay okay,” snapped Rey, more annoyed by the sudden realisation that Ben was probably gay than by what he was saying. “I mean, god, yes. That was annoying. Finn is going to be so pissed off about it. But I still liked a lot of those scenes.”

“So what didn’t you like? Let’s put our cards on the table.”

“Kira. I hated that her background was retconned so she wasn’t a nobody. It makes her so hard to identify with. And then making her a Palpatine means…” Something crystallised in Rey’s mind as she continued to think it through. “It means all her power comes from a man. From an old white man. Oh god.”

She drained her glass and reached for the bottle to refill it.

Ben was nodding. “It’s the power of the original trilogy. It’s written all over this movie. That’s why it ended with the force ghosts because they’re more important than the new characters. Kira, Kylo, all of them – they only exist to prop up the legacy of the original trilogy and appease middle aged fans. Fuck, if this isn’t a metaphor for the millenial experience, I don’t know what is!”

She handed him the bottle in sympathy, quietly smiling at the second time he had talked about metaphors that evening. Ben and Knight Solo weren’t that different after all.

“The ending though,” she continued, “I think that’s what left me so numb afterwards.”

“That left _everyone_ numb,” he interrupted. “That lack of reaction was not normal for after a premiere.”

“Right! So you know I’ve never been a Kiraylo shipper-” (knowing Ben was in the fandom, that he understood all of this, that somehow he already knew her, was _so_ reassuring, even if they disagreed over ships) “so I’ve never been a fan of Kira and Kylo flying off into the sunset together, but I wanted her happy with her found family in the Resistance, taking on some leadership role, maybe training up a new generation of Jedi.” She took another large swip of champagne. “Seeing her all alone on Tatooine, sliding down that sand hill as if she was back on Jakku, with nobody but ghosts for company, it killed me.” And suddenly, there was the misery she’d been holding back for the past hour. “It killed me, Ben! She deserved to be happy – how was that happiness?” There was a lump in her throat and she finished her second glass so he wouldn’t see her blinking back tears.

“It wasn’t!” he replied fiercely. “There was nothing happy about that. It was horrible.” He sat forwards, leaning his elbows on his thighs to talk to her even more intensely than before. “The film regressed her to childhood. Wearing white, going back to the desert planet – it was punishing her trying to grow up, for kissing Kylo. It was sending her back to the beginning of her heroine’s journey. It was no ending at all.”

Rey lowered her glass and looked at him. “This heroine’s journey stuff you Kiraylos are so obsessed with. This Joseph Campbell stuff…”

“The Joseph Campbell stuff that George Lucas literally talks about in interviews as the inspiration for Galaxy Wars?”

She rolled her eyes. “Yes, _that_ stuff. Believe it or not, I really do study English at UCL and this isn’t on any of my syllabuses, but what you’re saying, it makes sense. It’s interesting. Can you – can you tell me about Joseph Campbell?”

Ben’s eyes lit up and he poured himself another glass only to discover they’d finished the bottle. “You want me to tell you about Campbell and the hero’s journey and the heroine’s journey?”

He looked as if Christmas had come early. Rey blushed slightly. “Yeah. I do. But only if you do!”

“Not going to lie, Rey, I’ve been waiting my entire life for this moment! An anti wants me to explain stories to her! Shall we get another?” He shook the bottle slightly.

“Really? I mean, sure! But isn’t it stupidly expensive? I should get it.”

“Let my work pay. All of this is going on expenses. Trust me, they can afford it.”

Rey was impressed. “Well, in that case…”

She watched him walk over to the bar not even bothering to hide her interest. Her head was swimming too warmly and fuzzily for her to care if he noticed the way she eyed his progress across the room and back with a new bottle.

It was almost 5am. As he sat back down, something else occurred to her. “You’re here for work, right? So don’t you have to be up in a few hours? Are you sure you should be staying up now?”

He shrugged and opened the bottle with more care and expertise this time. “Might just quit my job. I hate it.”

“You hate it? What do you do?”

“Management consultancy. We advise shitty businesses on how to sell their shitty, exploitative products to vulnerable customers. The pay’s great but I hate every second.”

Understandable. “What would you do instead?”

“Not sure. Anything really. Try and write an actual novel? Move to England? Put my philosophy major to good use?”

Rey laughed. “Philosphy? Oh, that explains a lot! Cheers – from one useless degree to another!” They clinked glasses once more. “Well, if you do quit your job, you should at least wait until you get back to the States if they’re paying for you to be in England.”

“Good point, no rash decisions. And in answer to your question, I don’t care about going in on no sleep. I doubt it’ll make much difference to my usual levels of enthusiasm.”

Rey grinned at him so widely that he could not help grinning back, sleepily, a little warily, but it transformed his face. Rey decided then and there that she liked him a lot and that he definitely should quit his job and move to England.

Then she curled her legs up under her and got comfortable in the armchair and Ben told her all about Joseph Campbell and the hero’s journey and when he had explained that, he told her about the heroine’s journey and analysed _The Last Jedi_ for her in a way she had never considered before. The second bottle of champagne was finished and both were slumped so far down in their armchairs that they could just turn their heads resting on their respective arm rests to see each other. Rey was half asleep, lulled by the effects of the champagne and Ben’s deep voice spinning webs of girls and goddesses and symbolism and animinuses and animas.

There was a long silence in which she might well have fallen asleep.

“Rey?”

“Mmmm.”

“It’s 6am…”

“Mmm.”

“We should get you home. I have to be at work in two hours.”

“Mmm.”

“I’m going to call you an Uber. What’s your address?”

Rey forced herself to sit up and gave him the address. Then they sat there, opposite each other, summing each other up.

“So...” began Ben, looking at his hands. “Thank you. I don’t think I would be in a very good place right now if it weren’t for you. I’m not sure I am anyway, I still need to unpick all the ways Kylo’s fate is a betrayal of everything I thought Galaxy Wars stands for, but you’ve made it better.”

“So have you.” She hesitated and then reached out and touched his hand. “Hey, Ben? If you ever want to talk?”

At the touch of her hand, he looked up and met her eyes. “You too. You know, I’m in London for another two weeks and I don’t know anyone here. If you wanted to meet up again…”

“I do!” she replied very quickly. “I do want to meet up again. In fact, this afternoon I have to see the bloody film again with Finn and Rose but this evening, if you’re free, you could get a tube up to us and join us for dinner and we could hash it out some more over pizza.”

Ben looked unconvinced.

“They’re really nice people. Not the death threat sending types at all.”

This made him smile. “Okay then. I’ll let you know. I guess I know where to find you.”

“Yep. Oh! I should probably unblock you first…”

“You _blocked_ me?”

“You were being a jerk! I’m surprised you didn’t block me though.”

He shrugged. “I’ve seen worse. I might have got round to it eventually.”

There was a lot that still remained unsaid, a lot left to unpack at a time when both were more awake, a lot of ways that both of them needed to change, but Ben’s phone pinged announcing the arrival of Rey’s Uber. Head still swimming, she pushed herself to her feet.

“Well. See you online, I guess!”

Unexpectedly, Ben lurched forwards and folded her into an embrace. Rey, who was not a natural hugger, held back a moment and then slid her arms round him and pulled herself closer. His largeness was comforting, his smell was unexpectedly reassuring, and she felt that she could have stayed there a lot longer. He was the one to pull away first, however.

“See you online, Rey!” The way he said it felt almost like a caress and she felt the memory of his arms all the way into the Uber and back home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So you'll notice that the chapter count has changed to 3. There will be an all-on-Twitter epilogue! I was going to include it in this chapter but it was long enough as it was.
> 
> I've got really invested in this universe and there's actually a lot I haven't been able to include that I wanted to in terms of meta discussion of the film. Also the GingerRose subplot and Ben's backstory and some commentary on fandom. I also really love the meta fandom I've built up and writing a social media AU - I've always wanted to! I'm wondering about whether I should expand it to something much longer or whether it is what it needs to be in just three chapters.
> 
> Anyway, would love to hear what you think! <3


	3. Legacy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you once more for the wonderful reception of this fic! It's been very therapeutic and fun... and this chapter definitely verges on the cracky, if not absolutely getting there! I hope you enjoy!
> 
>  **Note:** This chapter does touch on some of the bullying and abuse that the Reylo fandom has suffered on Twitter. Nothing surprising here if you are at all active in the fandom, but a heads up in case mention of these issues is triggering to anyone. Skip "December 28th" if that applies to you!

**_December 20 th_ **

_@sunshinerey is now following @knightsolo_

_@knightsolo is now following @sunshinerey_

**Rey - > TROS Premiere @sunshinerey  
**Round 2 here we go! I am SO FUkCING HUNGOVER FML @finniganswoke @roticoart

 **Janka TROS tomorrow @lesbianskira  
** @sunshinerey but what did u think of it???

 **Phasma HAS READ LEAKS @phasmagoria  
** @sunshinerey So you’re just going to ignore everything that went down last night? Bold. I like it.

 **Rey - > TROS Premiere @sunshinerey  
**@phasmagoria Tha’s the plan

 **DM from @knightsolo to @sunshinerey  
** So you got back okay? I hope seeing the movie again brings you some clarity. See you later?

 **DM from @sunshinerey to @knightsolo  
** I feel SO BAD. I want to sleep. If only this film wasn’t so noisy. Ugh. You okay? We’re planning to go to the Pizza Hut at Cineworld Enfield at 6 if you’re in?

 **DM from @knightsolo to @sunshinerey  
** See you then!

_@knightsolo is now following @finniganswoke_

_@finniganswoke is now following @knightsolo_

_@roticoart is now following @knightsolo_

* * *

**_December 21 st_ **

**DM from @roticoart to @knightsolo  
** Hi Ben! Lovely to meet you in person last night – what a huge coincidence u meeting rey was! just thought I’d say if u wanted some art @ family & friends rate (FREE!!) for 1 of ur fics let me no. would be a pleasure! :)

 **DM from @knightsolo to @roticoart  
** That’s so kind of you. I’ve always thought your art was stunning. What about something from “Across the Stars” – the Naboo lake scene in Chapter 19 perhaps? I’ve always wanted that scene illustrated but so far nobody’s gone for it.

 **Rey has seen TROS @sunshinerey  
** So I really hated TROS. Kira’s ending straight up SUCKED.It’s a betrayal of the heroine’s journey established for her in TLJ.She should have been with the Resistance.& since they made her a “dyad in the force with Kylo” they should have both lived or both died.I said what I said.

 **DM from @sunshinerey to @galaxywarsbrain  
** Fuck you for that tweet. People won’t stop asking me about it and it’s honestly getting a bit weird. But in answer to your question YES IT WAS!!

 **Solo @knightsolo  
** You know what “dyad” sounds like? It sounds like “dryad”. They’re both dryads now. My new AU?

 **Millie watches Galaxy Wars @hugsandmillie  
** @knightsolo THAT’S your review of TROS? People want to know what THE MOST POPULAR KIRAYLO WRITER thinks! And you say that? Are you just going to shitpost now?

 **Solo @knightsolo  
** @hugsandmillie Yes.

 **Galaxy Wars Brain @galaxywarsbrain  
** TROS is hitting a lot of people hard for various reasons so we’ve started a Discord support group. Link below. Totally non-judgemental and no shipping wars allowed! Love you all! <3

* * *

**_December 23 rd_ **

**DM from @roticoart to @knightsolo  
** Confession time: never been very into Kiraylo so not read ur fics yet but I’ve got up to Chapter 19 and… uh yes. Y-E-S. I would LOVE to draw the lake scene! <3

 **DM from @sunshinerey to @knightsolo  
** Just occurred to me. Are you doing anything for Christmas?

 **DM from @knightsolo to @sunshinerey  
** Just staying in the hotel…

 **DM from @sunshinerey to @knightsolo  
** You should come over. Finn’s going to his sister’s and Rose has already gone home… We don’t have to do anything Christmassy, just hang out. Could be fun…

 **DM from @knightsolo to @sunshinerey  
** Just hang out? But I’m such a good cook!

 **DM from @sunshinerey to @knightsolo  
** Are you really???? Because I’m not!

 **DM from @knightsolo to @sunshinerey  
** I really am. I can cook you Christmas dinner if you like?

 **DM from @sunshinerey to @knightsolo  
** Uhhhhhh YES??? <3

 **Rey has seen TROS @sunshinerey  
** I know I’ve not been that active here that much since seeing TROS and I've not been replying to people but it's been a lot to process. I've been reassessing a lot of my previous takes on the series. I need time. Sorry, everyone!

 **Galaxy Wars Brain @galaxywarsbrain  
** @sunshinerey Take all the time you need. Would love to see you on the discord if you want people to discuss with. Do you still want to come on the podcast next week?

 **Rey has seen TROS @sunshinerey  
** @galaxywarsbrain Definitely! I have A LOT of opinions! But I have an idea about that podcast… I’ll get back to you!

 **Rey has seen TROS @sunshinerey  
** Considering dipping my toes into some #Kiraylo fic. Where should I start?

 **DM from @roticoart to @sunshinerey  
** HAVE YOU READ BENS FICS? BECAUSE I STARTED ACROSS THE STARS AND JEESUZ REY… Umm… I have QUESTIONS for that man

 **Rey has seen TROS @sunshinerey  
** Turns out everyone thinks I should read @knightsolo’s works. I guess I better listen to the majority. :P “Across the Stars” here we come! Am I ready for this?

 **Solo @knightsolo  
** @sunshinerey No.

 **DM from @sunshinerey to @knightsolo  
** No I’m not ready or no you don’t want me reading your fics?

 **DM from @knightsolo to @sunshinerey  
** Honestly, I feel a bit weird about you reading them. Nobody I’ve ever met in person has ever read them. But they’re out there on the internet so knock yourself out! You’re definitely not ready though. ;)

 **DM from @sunshinerey to @knightsolo  
** Colour me intrigued… :P

* * *

**_December 24th_ **

**Rey has seen TROS @sunshinerey  
** Why have I just woken up to death threats? What the FUCK?

 **Janka #ForceSensitiveBoyega @lesbianskira  
** @sunshinerey maybe bcos u tweeted about k*r*y*o u need to stop that

 **Rey has seen TROS @sunshinerey  
** @lesbianskira ???? I’m just tryinh to understand tros. How exactly do I deserve to die because of that?! Its not like I said I LIKED the ship. But even if I did, so what?

 **Rey has seen TROS @sunshinerey  
** Whatever. The weather is shit and I have 74 chapters of “Across the Stars” to read and nothing else to do. HAPPY CHRISTMAS EVE FAM!

 **Phasma HAS READ LEAKS @phasmagoria  
** @sunshinerey Welcome to the Kiraylo fandom! These are your first steps… We don’t bite! (Unless you’re into that sort of thing…)

 **Kaydel #KeepKylo @connixk  
** @sunshinerey AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHODEIFGJHFGIOHJFGIJH just wait until Chapter 34!

 **Steph #RedeemKyloRen @darrksideuser  
** @connixk @sunshinerey CHAPTER 34!!!!!!!! What about CHAPTER 59??? :o *dead*

 **Kaydel #KeepKylo @connixk  
** @darrksideuser @sunshinerey I’m feeling a re-read coming on…

 **Rey has seen TROS @sunshinerey  
** @connixk @darrksideuser H O L Y S H I T (chapter 22??)

 **Kaydel #KeepKylo @connixk  
** @sunshinerey @darrksideuser sweetie, that’s NOTHING :P

 **DM from @sunshinerey to @knightsolo  
** So, uh, your writing is INCREDIBLE. As you might have been able to tell from my incoherent reviews on AO3. :P But, uh, I do have some questions. Such as… uh… HOW ARE YOU SINGLE?

 **DM from @sunshinerey to @knightsolo  
** Sorry, assuming you are single. I don’t actually know that. Sorry… but seriously, HOW? Because Chapter 22 was just about the hottest thing I ever read and THEY DIDN’T EVEN TOUCH. Oh my god. (Still don’t ship them lol.)

 **DM from @knightsolo to @sunshinerey  
** I’m glad you’re enjoying the story. I am single. I suppose literary ability and social skills do not necessarily go together. I read a lot. And I don’t bring up my AO3 account when meeting women… Should I? It’s an idea…

 **DM from @sunshine to @knightsolo  
** Nope defiitely dont do that. did you get the chicken?

 **DM from @knightsolo to @sunshinerey  
** Of course! :) And everything else you asked me to get...

 **Solo @knightsolo  
** I have just experienced the very British custom of grocery shopping on Christmas Eve. A true cultural milestone. Waitrose is a very interesting place.

 **finn @finniganswoke  
** @knightsolo seriously?? waitrose??

* * *

**_December 25 th_ **

**DM from @sunshinerey to @knightsolo  
** OMG crisis!! No stuffing! Think you can find somewhere on your way? The Asian shops might be open…

 **DM from @knightsolo to @sunshinerey  
** Leave it to me! Looking forward to seeing you later.

 **DM from @sunshinerey to @knightsolo  
** Me too! :))))

 **finn @finniganswoke  
** @sunshinerey u sure youll be ok today? u are still welcome to come over to me and jannahs.

 **Rey has seen TROS @sunshinerey  
** @finniganswoke <3 I’m gonna be fine. I have a very nice day planned. And lots of fanfic to read… Happy Christmas!!!! <3 <3 <3

 **Rey has seen TROS @sunshinerey  
** Happy Christmas! I’m having a marvellous day in bed with a bowl of stuffing and @knightsolo! <3

 **finn @finniganswoke  
** @sunshinerey @knightsolo I cannot believe ur actually spending xmas day reading kiraylo fanfic. (no offense solo im sure ur stuff is great)

 **Rey has seen TROS @sunshinerey  
** @finniganswoke @knightsolo Yep that’s definitely what I meant. (And it is great. @knightsolo’s stuff. I am a convert.)

 **Rose Tico Art @roticoart  
** @sunshinerey @finniganswoke @knightsolo Finn. Sweetie.

 **Sen. Organa @leiaorgana  
** @knightsolo Do you know how many favors I had to pull in at the FBI to find your Twitter account? TURN ON YOUR CELL AND SKYPE YOUR MOTHER! IT’S CHRISTMAS DAY. WHERE ARE YOU?

 **Sen. Organa @leiaorgana  
** @knightsolo If you do not Skype me in the next hour (I know you are checking this page) I will give your AO3 username to your Uncle Luke. You have some interesting things on your page. What is A/B/O?

 **Phasma HAS READ LEAKS @phasmagoria  
** This is honestly the best day ever if you follow both the Kiraylo fandom and American politics. And that’s not something I ever thought I’d say because normally both of these experiences is like being dumped headfirst in the trash.

 **Millie watches Galaxy Wars @hugsandmillie  
** @phasmagoria The garbage will do.

_@leiaorgana is now following @sunshinerey_

_@sunshinerey is now following @leiaorgana_

_@knightsolo’s tweets are now protected_

* * *

**_December 27 th_ **

**Galaxy Wars Brain @galaxywarsbrain  
** It’s been a week since TROS and our first reaction podcast is now up. Join long-time Kira stan @sunshinerey in conversation with prolific Kiraylo author @knightsolo as they discuss their reactions to TROS. You’re in for a treat – and a surprise or two!

_retweeted with comment by @knightsolo_

**Solo @knightsolo  
** Yes, I am a man. Kiraylo and this fandom has changed my life. Die mad about it.

 _retweeted with comment by @sunshinerey  
_ **Rey is on GWB @sunshinerey  
** I hope you find this podcast as cathartic to listen to as I did to make. I guess… I no longer hate Kiraylo? I still have problems with it and LOTS of problems with TROS (as I discuss) but I get it and I get why people ship it and like it. Lots of love to all GW fans!

 **Rey is on GWB @sunshinerey  
** @sunshinerey ALSO you all need to go read “Across the Stars” by @knightsolo because it is PHENOMENAL. Whatever you think of Kiraylo in the films, I ship them so hard in this fic it’s unreal.

 **Steph #RedeemKyloRen @darrksideuser  
** @sunshinerey OMG have you finished it already??? YOU’RE ONE OF US NOW WHATEVER U SAY

 **Kaydel #KeepKylo @connixk  
** @darrksideuser @galaxywarsbrain REYLO THOUGH?????????? :o ;) <3

* * *

**_December 28 th_ **

**Rey is on GWB @sunshinerey  
** 1/ Okay, this thread has been coming for a while but I’ve held off because I don’t like drama, but it has to be said. Since I first mentioned any vague interest in Kiraylo after watching TROS and since I accidentally sat next to @knightsolo I’ve seen some disturbing stuff online.

 **Rey is on GWB @sunshinerey  
** 2/ I've been retweeted and replied to with insults, calling me sexist, racist and abusive.I've been told I can't tell the difference between RL and fiction (kinda awkward considering I'm studying Eng lit) & that my decision to read a popular fanfic means I'm okay with rape in RL.

 **Rey is on GWB @sunshinerey  
** 3/ I've been called a N*zi sympathiser. I've been told to "fuck off and die." I've been copied into tweets discussing the best way for me to kill myself. BECAUSE I READ A FANFIC. Guys, this is MESSED UP. Beyond messed up.

 **Rey is on GWB @sunshinerey  
** 4/ TROS wasn't what I hoped for. It's brought up a lot of personal shit I'm still dealing with. I've cried over it. I'm still angry. The last week, for lots of reasons, has been weird and upsetting and wonderful and unexpected. I don't quite know who I am anymore.

 **Rey is on GWB @sunshinerey  
** 5/ Some of the people who've been saying this stuff are creepy reddit users, mostly men. It's gross. But that's being a woman online. But others are people I thought were my friends, fellow Kira fans, fellow GW fans. What the hell, guys? Is shipping SO IMPORTANT TO YOU?

 **Rey is on GWB @sunshinerey  
** 6/ If you're such fans of calling out abuse in fiction (and SO AM I because the real world impacts on fiction and vice versa), then why do you find it so easy to bully another human being? I'm more sad about this than about the film. IT'S FAKE AND IN SPACE. Peace out. #end

_@sunshinerey’s tweets are now protected_

* * *

**_December 29 th_ **

**DM from @knightsolo to @sunshinerey, @finniganswoke, @roticoart  
** It’s been brought to my attention that I have a large hotel room on the 25th floor with a view across London. Would you all like to come over for NYE and watch the fireworks? All expenses going on the company credit card.

 **DM from @finniganswoke to @knightsolo, @sunshinerey, @roticoart  
** wait, ALL expenses? Including booze?

 **DM from @roticoart to @finniganswoke, @knightsolo, @sunshinerey  
** What Finn means is that we’d all love to come. Thanks, Ben!

* * *

**_January 1st_ **

**Solo @knightsolo  
** Big changes coming in 2020. I have a good feeling about this.

 **Millie watches Galaxy Wars @hugsandmillie  
** @knightsolo Terrible last words, mate.

 **Phasma HAS READ LEAKS @phasmagoria  
** @hugsandmillie @knightsolo Why are you so WEIRD? Don’t answer that.

 **Rose Tico Art @roticoart  
** Happy New Year to everyone but especially to my new friend @knightsolo and his amazing fic “Across the Stars”. Hope you like my version of the infamous lake scene!

_retweeted by @knightsolo, @sunshinerey, @finniganswoke @hugsandmillie @phasmagoria and 3215 others_

* * *

**_January 3 rd_ **

**Solo @knightsolo  
** Virgin Atlantic had TLJ. I watched it twice. Poignant to remember when GW was good.

 **Rey Ren @sunshinerey  
** @knightsolo So you got back safely? How’s New York?

 **Solo @knightsolo  
** @sunshinerey Still stuck in the WBW (aka JFK baggage claim). It’s cold.

 **Rey Ren @sunshinerey  
** @knightsolo Come back soon…

 **Solo @knightsolo  
** @sunshinerey I’ll come back, sweetheart, I promise! ;)

 **Rey Ren @sunshinerey  
** @knightsolo Bwhahahahahahahahahahahaha (I’ll hold you to that)

* * *

**_January 4 th _ **

**Solo @knightsolo  
** Heads to up to readers of “Lady Nobody and the Ballad of Jedi Tech” but I’m going to be pulling this story from AO3 at the end of the month. “Across the Stars” may come down too within the next few months. Feel free to download and save both stories.

 **Steph #RedeemKyloRen @darrksideuser  
** @knightsolo WHAAAAAAAT?????

 **Kaydel #KeepKylo @connixk  
** @knightsolo Wait, does this mean what I think it means? THIS IS SO EXCITING!!!!!!

 **Rey Ren @sunshinerey  
** @knightsolo <3 (But seriously that fic is the weirdest, most brilliant thing I’ve ever read. I have no idea how gothic cyberpunk romance works for Kiraylo or indeed anything but it DOES. Genius.)

* * *

**_January 5 th_ **

**Solo @knightsolo  
** TWO. WEEKS. NOTICE.

 **Millie watches Galaxy Wars @hugsandmillie  
** @knightsolo Someone’s already written that AU…

 **Rey Ren @sunshinerey  
** @knightsolo YAAAAAAY! I am so excited!!!!!!

* * *

**_January 6 th_ **

**Solo @knightsolo  
** Apologies for the recent cryptic tweets. I have taken the big step to quit a job that has made me unhappy for too long in order to focus on my writing. I’m in the process of turning LNBJT into an original fantasy novel. I’m also moving to England in February.

 **Phasma HAS READ LEAKS @phasmagoria  
** @knightsolo Good for you. Is moving to England necessary for the creative process then?

 **Solo @knightsolo  
** @phasmagoria Absolutely essential.

 **finn @finniganswoke  
** @knightsolo one of my mates works in an estate agents. let me know if u want me ask around for flats.

 **Solo @knightsolo  
** @finniganswoke I’d appreciate that. Thank you.

 **Kaydel #KeepKylo @connixk  
** OMG have you seen Solo’s status? THIS IS BIG. And you know what I think? Let’s get #REYLOISCANON trending! @darrksideuser @mitaka

 **Mitty @mitaka  
** @connixk @darrksideuser Does Solo even have British citizenship? Or a job that will sponsor him? How’s he going to stay in the country? Sorry, I can’t help thinking of these things…

 **Steph #RedeemKyloRen @darrksideuser  
** @mitaka @connixk …are you… thinking what I’m thinking??? #REYLOISCANON

 **Mitty @mitaka  
** @darrksideuser @connixk oh my god

 **Kaydel #KeepKylo @connixk  
** @darrksideuser @mitaka ofc we are. And we’re here for it. Every step of the way. We all know how this one ends! #REYLOISCANON

 **Phasma HAS READ LEAKS @phasmagoria  
** @connixk @darrksideuser @mitaka I love this fandom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's a very high chance that I will take down and rework this fic at some point into something longer and more involved, but for the moment, that's it! Back to _Growing Beyond_...
> 
> Thanks for reading and let me know what you think! :)

**Author's Note:**

> All comments are much appreciated. If you are enjoying this story, do check out my other Reylo modern AU, [Growing Beyond](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14325843/chapters/33057597).
> 
> You can also find me on tumblr at [@ladyreysolo](https://ladyreysolo.tumblr.com/) and twitter at [@silvestria13](https://twitter.com/silvestria13).


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